Stars’ Time Capsule: A Look Back at the 2000 Draft Part I of III

By Geoffrey Ussery

February 25th, 2003

Back in 2000, the Stars made a couple of controversialselections in the early rounds that left some fans, including myself,scratchingtheir heads. In a system that was at the time so deprived of scoring talent,theselection of another gritty, character player and a goalie in the first tworounds was puzzling. Two years later, and all-around, the draft is shapingup tobe quite a feat. While only one of these prospects have made the NHL at themoment, thetwo years of development since the draft have turned this class into aremarkable one that isforming the backbone of Dallas’s future.

Dusting off an old article hiding in the cobwebs of the HFarchives, let us see how after two years the overall views on the firstfive 2000draftees have changed.

First Round Pick, #25Overall-Steve Ott

Back then, the general estimation was: “Must gain weight tobe effectivein the NHL, but already has the necessary skills plus speed, good puckcontrol,and good passing ability, while also maintaining a distinct edge to hisgame.Proof of his skills lie in the fact that he led his team in scoring as arookie,and was MVP for Team Cherry in the ’00 CHL Prospect Game.

Solid pick with good upside, and should develop into a nicetwo-way player.”

Two years later, not much has changed with Ott except thatthat “edge” has transformed into a keen cutting blade. One of the premieragitator prospects, Ott ratcheted up his offense in his final two junioryearsand was also a part of two consecutive Canadian World Junior Championshipteams.He has already seen limited action with the Stars in his first pro year,producing a goal and an assist while terrorizing the opposition. His part oftheyear in Utah has been disappointing, especially from a productionstandpoint.From the start of the year, it was clear that his focus was on making andsticking with the Stars. If it were not for the remarkable play of NikoKapanen,Ott would likely have spent most of the year with the Stars. A spot on theroster is almost guaranteed next year for this super pest. Hopefully, hewill beable to crank up his offense a notch and become a threat to the other teaminmore than emotion.

Second Round Pick, #60Overall-Dan Ellis

The prevailing knowledge of the time held: “A butterflygoalie that played lastseason in the weaker USHL, and will attend college next season. Possessesgoodquickness, rebound control, and focus, but must translate his game to thehigherlevels of competition.

A reach made because of need, but his progress has beenencouraging.”

Moving to the CCHA with UN-Omaha after his selection, DanEllis essentially became that team. As he went, so went the Mavericks.Ellis’sgoaltending prowess transferred well to the tougher NCAA, as his freshmanandsophomore years were excellent in this powerful hockey conference, earningplayer of the week honors several times and winning some postseason honorsaswell. But for the quick butterfly goalie, his third year has been a littlemorehumbling. Coming into the year having high expectations placed on him, Ellishasbeen average, and his team has suffered for it. He still has one year leftincollege to regain his form. One of the more unheard of goaltending prospectsthat has good potential, Ellis has turned out to be worth the selection andisnow a member of one of the deeper goaltending talent pools of the NHL.

Third Round Pick, #68Overall-Joel Lundqvist

Many, many moons ago, a wise man said: “Joel has played wellin recentinternational tournaments, while showing average speed, plus hockey sense,andvery good hands around the net.

A very nice pick that shows good offensive upside.”

Two years later and Lundqvist is arguably the second bestprospect selected behind Steve Ott. Sleeper pick was the correct term fortheSwede as he has followed a solid rookie campaign for Frölunda withimprovementoffensively. Lundqvist has shown very good playmaking ability and scoringinstincts plus a bit of a mean streak. His play this year earned himnominationsto the Swedish National Team for some of the Eurotour Tournaments. Lundqvistwasquiet at these events, and the level of competition highlighted a need toimprove his skating and face-off ability further. One of the better youngplayersin Sweden, Lundqvist will probably remain in his homeland and refine hisgame alittle longer. Look out in the future for this player as he has a niceall-around package of skills. With an improvement in skating and a littlemorebulk, he could be a powerful, skilled player for the Stars.

Fourth Round Pick, #91Overall-Alexei Tereschenko

And the chronicles related: “An explosive skater that is anexcellentstick-handler, and was an All-Star at the ’00 WJC. While he is a finesseplayerthat must work on his play away from the puck, he is still a hard worker andcompetitor despite this shortcoming.

A flashy player that needs some work, but this was a greatpick in this spot.”

Oddly enough, Tereschenko’s initial mark in theSuperleague was made as a reliable defensive player. With two years ofdevelopment, the offense has started to come around. A natural leader whoworkshard all the time, Tereschenko has become a threat after adapting to theSuperleague and getting ice time due to his good passing vision and skatingability. Now molded into much more of a two-way player, Tereschenko has alsoshowed enough to play for Team Russia in one of the Eurotour events,registeringan assist. Given his size and skills, Tereschenko appears to be a Russiannear-copy of current rookie Niko Kapanen. This similarity may limit hisusefulness to the Stars, especially in the short term, however.

Fourth Round Pick, #123Overall-Vadim Khomitsky

The available reports revealed about him: “Is a steadystay-at-home type defensemanwho has good mobility, and should take several years to develop inRussia.

Little known about this prospect, but picking a Europeandefenseman makes sense.”

One of the quietest rookies in this draft, Khomitsky hasdeveloped slowly in the Russian Superleague. He is still more of a physical,aggressive, stay-at-home guy than anything but over the years has also addedanoffensive dimension to his game. He has good instincts in leading andjoiningthe rush as well as above average passing skills, but his shot is average. Asolidskater, Khomitsky is at his best in his own end where he can control thegame,usually physically. His defensive positioning is somewhat reliable andshouldimprove as he gains experience in the pros. Though not a superstar caliberplayer, Khomitsky has a nice package that may be intriguing to the Stars inacouple of years. Already having made a splash signing Alexei Komarov overthesummer, Khomitskymay be on the radar as well.

A Few Notes

As an end to this story, let us shift the focus back toStars prospects in general to bring to light some things that may be ofinterestto Stars fans or fans in general.

Recently, the Stars had five players representing nationalteams at the Sweden Hockey Games. Eurotour events are usually used asbarometersto gauge the ability of players to compete on the international stage.Strongshowings in these events can help a player’s case to make a country’s WorldChampionship squad. The five players competing played for three nations.MathiasTjärnqvist and Joel Lundqvist suited up for Sweden while Alexei TereschenkoandRuslan Bernikov joined the Russian squad. Teemu Elomo was the Stars’ lonerepresentative for Finland.

Though a little past the halfway point now, theUnofficial Utah Grizzlies Fansite had gradedthe Grizzlies roster at the midpoint of the season. That roster haschangednow, but the nuggets of informationon Stars prospects is still worth the trip.